In collaboration with several western Canadian producer crop commodity organizations, the Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF) has issued a request for proposals to assess the capacity for crop agronomic research in Western Canada.

“Agronomic research provides valuable information for producers,” said WGRF Board Chair Dave Sefton of Broadview Saskatchewan. “Historically much of this information has come from research performed by public institutions and universities. Western Canadian farmers are concerned that public agronomic research capacity has not kept pace with the growth of the industry” noted Sefton.

“WGRF’s mandate is to fund research that directly benefits western Canadian producers,” said Garth Patterson, WGRF Executive Director. “Producer organizations have started the discussion about developing a way to ensure the capacity to perform agronomic research in Western Canada is maintained and this study is the first step in that process. The information collected in this study will assist producer organizations in determining potential future research investments,” added Patterson.

The study will focus on agronomic research capacity in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Peace River region of British Columbia and will include federal government, provincial government, universities, private contractor and producer operated facilities.

WGRF would like to acknowledge all the producer organizations currently involved in this study to assess the capacity for agronomic research in Western Canada: Alberta Barley Commission, Alberta Canola Producers, Alberta Pulse Growers, Alberta Wheat Commission, Manitoba Canola Growers, Manitoba Pulse Growers, SaskCanola, SaskFlax, and the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers.